I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5 

To reform the process by which Federal agencies analyze and formulate 

new regulations and guidance documents, to clarify the nature of judicial 

review of agency interpretations, to ensure complete analysis of potential 

impacts on small entities of rules, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 3, 2017 

Mr. GOODLATTE (for himself, Mr. PETERSON, Mr. CHABOT, Mr. MARINO, Mr. 

RATCLIFFE, and Mr. LUETKEMEYER) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the 

Committees on Oversight and Government Reform, and Small Business, 

for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case 

for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 

committee concerned 

A BILL 

To reform the process by which Federal agencies analyze 

and formulate new regulations and guidance documents, 

to clarify the nature of judicial review of agency interpretations, to ensure complete analysis of potential impacts 

on small entities of rules, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Regulatory Accountability Act of 2017’’. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 5 IH

1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—REGULATORY ACCOUNTABILITY ACT 

Sec. 101. Short title. 

Sec. 102. Definitions. 

Sec. 103. Rule making. 

Sec. 104. Agency guidance; procedures to issue major guidance; presidential authority to issue guidelines for issuance of guidance. 

Sec. 105. Hearings; presiding employees; powers and duties; burden of proof; 

evidence; record as basis of decision. 

Sec. 106. Actions reviewable. 

Sec. 107. Scope of review. 

Sec. 108. Added definition. 

Sec. 109. Effective date. 

TITLE II—SEPARATION OF POWERS RESTORATION ACT 

Sec. 201. Short title. 

Sec. 202. Judicial review of statutory and regulatory interpretations. 

TITLE III—SMALL BUSINESS REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY 

IMPROVEMENTS ACT 

Sec. 301. Short title. 

Sec. 302. Clarification and expansion of rules covered by the regulatory flexibility act. 

Sec. 303. Expansion of report of regulatory agenda. 

Sec. 304. Requirements providing for more detailed analyses. 

Sec. 305. Repeal of waiver and delay authority; additional powers of the Chief 

Counsel for advocacy. 

Sec. 306. Procedures for gathering comments. 

Sec. 307. Periodic review of rules. 

Sec. 308. Judicial review of compliance with the requirements of the regulatory 

flexibility act available after publication of the final rule. 

Sec. 309. Jurisdiction of court of appeals over rules implementing the regulatory flexibility act. 

Sec. 310. Establishment and approval of small business concern size standards 

by Chief Counsel for Advocacy. 

Sec. 311. Clerical amendments. 

Sec. 312. Agency preparation of guides. 

Sec. 313. Comptroller general report. 

TITLE IV—REQUIRE EVALUATION BEFORE IMPLEMENTING 

EXECUTIVE WISHLISTS ACT 

Sec. 401. Short title. 

Sec. 402. Relief pending review. 

TITLE V—ALL ECONOMIC REGULATIONS ARE TRANSPARENT ACT 

Sec. 501. Short title. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 5 IH

Sec. 502. Office of information and regulatory affairs publication of information relating to rules. 

TITLE VI—PROVIDING ACCOUNTABILITY THROUGH 

TRANSPARENCY ACT 

Sec. 601. Short title. 

Sec. 602. Requirement to post a 100 word summary to regulations.gov. 

1 TITLE I—REGULATORY 

2 ACCOUNTABILITY ACT 

3 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Regulatory Account5 ability Act’’. 

6 SEC. 102. DEFINITIONS. 

7 Section 551 of title 5, United States Code, is amend8 ed— 

9 (1) in paragraph (13), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

10 end; 

11 (2) in paragraph (14), by striking the period at 

12 the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

13 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(15) ‘major rule’ means any rule that the Ad15 ministrator of the Office of Information and Regu16 latory Affairs determines is likely to impose— 

17 ‘‘(A) an annual cost on the economy of 

18 $100,000,000 or more, adjusted annually for 

19 inflation; 

20 ‘‘(B) a major increase in costs or prices for 

21 consumers, individual industries, Federal, 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 5 IH

1 State, local, or tribal government agencies, or 

2 geographic regions; 

3 ‘‘(C) significant adverse effects on competi4 tion, employment, investment, productivity, in5 novation, or on the ability of United States6 based enterprises to compete with foreign-based 

7 enterprises in domestic and export markets; or 

8 ‘‘(D) significant impacts on multiple sec9 tors of the economy; 

10 ‘‘(16) ‘high-impact rule’ means any rule that 

11 the Administrator of the Office of Information and 

12 Regulatory Affairs determines is likely to impose an 

13 annual cost on the economy of $1,000,000,000 or 

14 more, adjusted annually for inflation; 

15 ‘‘(17) ‘negative-impact on jobs and wages rule’ 

16 means any rule that the agency that made the rule 

17 or the Administrator of the Office of Information 

18 and Regulatory Affairs determines is likely to— 

19 ‘‘(A) in one or more sectors of the economy 

20 that has a 6-digit code under the North Amer21 ican Industry Classification System, reduce em22 ployment not related to new regulatory compli23 ance by 1 percent or more annually during the 

24 1-year, 5-year, or 10-year period after imple25 mentation; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(B) in one or more sectors of the econ2 omy that has a 6-digit code under the North 

3 American Industry Classification System, re4 duce average weekly wages for employment not 

5 related to new regulatory compliance by 1 per6 cent or more annually during the 1-year, 5- 

7 year, or 10-year period after implementation; 

8 ‘‘(C) in any industry area (as such term is 

9 defined in the Current Population Survey con10 ducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics) in 

11 which the most recent annual unemployment 

12 rate for the industry area is greater than 5 per13 cent, as determined by the Bureau of Labor 

14 Statistics in the Current Population Survey, re15 duce employment not related to new regulatory 

16 compliance during the first year after imple17 mentation; or 

18 ‘‘(D) in any industry area in which the Bu19 reau of Labor Statistics projects in the Occupa20 tional Employment Statistics program that the 

21 employment level will decrease by 1 percent or 

22 more, further reduce employment not related to 

23 new regulatory compliance during the first year 

24 after implementation; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(18) ‘guidance’ means an agency statement of 

2 general applicability and future effect, other than a 

3 regulatory action, that sets forth a policy on a statu4 tory, regulatory or technical issue or an interpreta5 tion of a statutory or regulatory issue; 

6 ‘‘(19) ‘major guidance’ means guidance that the 

7 Administrator of the Office of Information and Reg8 ulatory Affairs finds is likely to lead to— 

9 ‘‘(A) an annual cost on the economy of 

10 $100,000,000 or more, adjusted annually for 

11 inflation; 

12 ‘‘(B) a major increase in costs or prices for 

13 consumers, individual industries, Federal, 

14 State, local or tribal government agencies, or 

15 geographic regions; 

16 ‘‘(C) significant adverse effects on competi17 tion, employment, investment, productivity, in18 novation, or on the ability of United States19 based enterprises to compete with foreign-based 

20 enterprises in domestic and export markets; or 

21 ‘‘(D) significant impacts on multiple sec22 tors of the economy; 

23 ‘‘(20) the ‘Information Quality Act’ means sec24 tion 515 of Public Law 106–554, the Treasury and 

25 General Government Appropriations Act for Fiscal 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 5 IH

1 Year 2001, and guidelines issued by the Adminis2 trator of the Office of Information and Regulatory 

3 Affairs or other agencies pursuant to the Act; and 

4 ‘‘(21) the ‘Office of Information and Regulatory 

5 Affairs’ means the office established under section 

6 3503 of chapter 35 of title 44 and any successor to 

7 that office.’’. 

8 SEC. 103. RULE MAKING. 

9 (a) Section 553(a) of title 5, United States Code, is 

10 amended by striking ‘‘(a) This section applies’’ and insert11 ing ‘‘(a) APPLICABILITY.—This section applies’’. 

12 (b) Section 553 of title 5, United States Code, is 

13 amended by striking subsections (b) through (e) and in14 serting the following: 

15 ‘‘(b) RULE MAKING CONSIDERATIONS.—In a rule 

16 making, an agency shall make all preliminary and final 

17 factual determinations based on evidence and consider, in 

18 addition to other applicable considerations, the following: 

19 ‘‘(1) The legal authority under which a rule 

20 may be proposed, including whether a rule making 

21 is required by statute, and if so, whether by a spe22 cific date, or whether the agency has discretion to 

23 commence a rule making. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(2) Other statutory considerations applicable 

2 to whether the agency can or should propose a rule 

3 or undertake other agency action. 

4 ‘‘(3) The specific nature and significance of the 

5 problem the agency may address with a rule (includ6 ing the degree and nature of risks the problem poses 

7 and the priority of addressing those risks compared 

8 to other matters or activities within the agency’s ju9 risdiction), whether the problem warrants new agen10 cy action, and the countervailing risks that may be 

11 posed by alternatives for new agency action. 

12 ‘‘(4) Whether existing rules have created or 

13 contributed to the problem the agency may address 

14 with a rule and whether those rules could be amend15 ed or rescinded to address the problem in whole or 

16 part. 

17 ‘‘(5) Any reasonable alternatives for a new rule 

18 or other response identified by the agency or inter19 ested persons, including not only responses that 

20 mandate particular conduct or manners of compli21 ance, but also— 

22 ‘‘(A) the alternative of no Federal re23 sponse; 

24 ‘‘(B) amending or rescinding existing 

25 rules; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(C) potential regional, State, local, or 

2 tribal regulatory action or other responses that 

3 could be taken in lieu of agency action; and 

4 ‘‘(D) potential responses that— 

5 ‘‘(i) specify performance objectives 

6 rather than conduct or manners of compli7 ance; 

8 ‘‘(ii) establish economic incentives to 

9 encourage desired behavior; 

10 ‘‘(iii) provide information upon which 

11 choices can be made by the public; or 

12 ‘‘(iv) incorporate other innovative al13 ternatives rather than agency actions that 

14 specify conduct or manners of compliance. 

15 ‘‘(6) Notwithstanding any other provision of 

16 law— 

17 ‘‘(A) the potential costs and benefits asso18 ciated with potential alternative rules and other 

19 responses considered under section 553(b)(5), 

20 including direct, indirect, and cumulative costs 

21 and benefits and estimated impacts on jobs (in22 cluding an estimate of the net gain or loss in 

23 domestic jobs), wages, economic growth, innova24 tion, economic competitiveness, and impacts on 

25 low income populations; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(B) means to increase the cost-effective2 ness of any Federal response; and 

3 ‘‘(C) incentives for innovation, consistency, 

4 predictability, lower costs of enforcement and 

5 compliance (to government entities, regulated 

6 entities, and the public), and flexibility. 

7 ‘‘(c) ADVANCE NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULE MAKING

8 FOR MAJOR RULES, HIGH-IMPACT RULES, NEGATIVE-IM9 PACT ON JOBS AND WAGES RULES, AND RULES INVOLV10 ING NOVEL LEGAL OR POLICY ISSUES.—In the case of 

11 a rule making for a major rule, a high-impact rule, a nega12 tive-impact on jobs and wages rule, or a rule that involves 

13 a novel legal or policy issue arising out of statutory man14 dates, not later than 90 days before a notice of proposed 

15 rule making is published in the Federal Register, an agen16 cy shall publish advance notice of proposed rule making 

17 in the Federal Register. In publishing such advance notice, 

18 the agency shall— 

19 ‘‘(1) include a written statement identifying, at 

20 a minimum— 

21 ‘‘(A) the nature and significance of the 

22 problem the agency may address with a rule, in23 cluding data and other evidence and informa24 tion on which the agency expects to rely for the 

25 proposed rule; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(B) the legal authority under which a rule 

2 may be proposed, including whether a rule mak3 ing is required by statute, and if so, whether by 

4 a specific date, or whether the agency has dis5 cretion to commence a rule making; 

6 ‘‘(C) preliminary information available to 

7 the agency concerning the other considerations 

8 specified in subsection (b); 

9 ‘‘(D) in the case of a rule that involves a 

10 novel legal or policy issue arising out of statu11 tory mandates, the nature of and potential rea12 sons to adopt the novel legal or policy position 

13 upon which the agency may base a proposed 

14 rule; and 

15 ‘‘(E) an achievable objective for the rule 

16 and metrics by which the agency will measure 

17 progress toward that objective; 

18 ‘‘(2) solicit written data, views or argument 

19 from interested persons concerning the information 

20 and issues addressed in the advance notice; and 

21 ‘‘(3) provide for a period of not fewer than 60 

22 days for interested persons to submit such written 

23 data, views, or argument to the agency. 

24 ‘‘(d) NOTICES OF PROPOSED RULE MAKING; DETER25 MINATIONS OF OTHER AGENCY COURSE.—(1) Before it 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 5 IH

1 determines to propose a rule, and following completion of 

2 procedures under subsection (c), if applicable, the agency 

3 shall consult with the Administrator of the Office of Infor4 mation and Regulatory Affairs. If the agency thereafter 

5 determines to propose a rule, the agency shall publish a 

6 notice of proposed rule making, which shall include— 

7 ‘‘(A) a statement of the time, place, and nature 

8 of public rule making proceedings; 

9 ‘‘(B) reference to the legal authority under 

10 which the rule is proposed; 

11 ‘‘(C) the terms of the proposed rule; 

12 ‘‘(D) a description of information known to the 

13 agency on the subject and issues of the proposed 

14 rule, including but not limited to— 

15 ‘‘(i) a summary of information known to 

16 the agency concerning the considerations speci17 fied in subsection (b); 

18 ‘‘(ii) a summary of additional information 

19 the agency provided to and obtained from inter20 ested persons under subsection (c); 

21 ‘‘(iii) a summary of any preliminary risk 

22 assessment or regulatory impact analysis per23 formed by the agency; and 

24 ‘‘(iv) information specifically identifying all 

25 data, studies, models, and other evidence or inVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:28 Jan 04, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5.IH H5

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 5 IH

1 formation considered or used by the agency in 

2 connection with its determination to propose 

3 the rule; 

4 ‘‘(E)(i) a reasoned preliminary determination of 

5 need for the rule based on the information described 

6 under subparagraph (D); 

7 ‘‘(ii) an additional statement of whether a rule 

8 is required by statute; and 

9 ‘‘(iii) an achievable objective for the rule and 

10 metrics by which the agency will measure progress 

11 toward that objective; 

12 ‘‘(F) a reasoned preliminary determination that 

13 the benefits of the proposed rule meet the relevant 

14 statutory objectives and justify the costs of the pro15 posed rule (including all costs to be considered under 

16 subsection (b)(6)), based on the information de17 scribed under subparagraph (D); 

18 ‘‘(G) a discussion of— 

19 ‘‘(i) the alternatives to the proposed rule, 

20 and other alternative responses, considered by 

21 the agency under subsection (b); 

22 ‘‘(ii) the costs and benefits of those alter23 natives (including all costs to be considered 

24 under subsection (b)(6)); 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
14 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(iii) whether those alternatives meet rel2 evant statutory objectives; and 

3 ‘‘(iv) why the agency did not propose any 

4 of those alternatives; and 

5 ‘‘(H)(i) a statement of whether existing rules 

6 have created or contributed to the problem the agen7 cy seeks to address with the proposed rule; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) if so, whether or not the agency proposes 

9 to amend or rescind any such rules, and why. 

10 All information provided to or considered by the agency, 

11 and steps to obtain information by the agency, in connec12 tion with its determination to propose the rule, including 

13 any preliminary risk assessment or regulatory impact 

14 analysis prepared by the agency and all other information 

15 prepared or described by the agency under subparagraph 

16 (D) and, at the discretion of the President or the Adminis17 trator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

18 information provided by that Office in consultations with 

19 the agency, shall be placed in the docket for the proposed 

20 rule and made accessible to the public by electronic means 

21 and otherwise for the public’s use when the notice of pro22 posed rule making is published. 

23 ‘‘(2)(A) If the agency undertakes procedures under 

24 subsection (c) and determines thereafter not to propose 

25 a rule, the agency shall, following consultation with the 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
15 

•HR 5 IH

1 Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, publish a 

2 notice of determination of other agency course. A notice 

3 of determination of other agency course shall include in4 formation required by paragraph (1)(D) to be included in 

5 a notice of proposed rule making and a description of the 

6 alternative response the agency determined to adopt. 

7 ‘‘(B) If in its determination of other agency course 

8 the agency makes a determination to amend or rescind 

9 an existing rule, the agency need not undertake additional 

10 proceedings under subsection (c) before it publishes a no11 tice of proposed rule making to amend or rescind the exist12 ing rule. 

13 All information provided to or considered by the agency, 

14 and steps to obtain information by the agency, in connec15 tion with its determination of other agency course, includ16 ing but not limited to any preliminary risk assessment or 

17 regulatory impact analysis prepared by the agency and all 

18 other information that would be required to be prepared 

19 or described by the agency under paragraph (1)(D) if the 

20 agency had determined to publish a notice of proposed rule 

21 making and, at the discretion of the President or the Ad22 ministrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory 

23 Affairs, information provided by that Office in consulta24 tions with the agency, shall be placed in the docket for 

25 the determination and made accessible to the public by 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
16 

•HR 5 IH

1 electronic means and otherwise for the public’s use when 

2 the notice of determination is published. 

3 ‘‘(3) After notice of proposed rule making required 

4 by this section, the agency shall provide interested persons 

5 an opportunity to participate in the rule making through 

6 submission of written data, views, or arguments with or 

7 without opportunity for oral presentation, except that— 

8 ‘‘(A) if a hearing is required under paragraph 

9 (4)(B) or subsection (e), opportunity for oral presen10 tation shall be provided pursuant to that require11 ment; or 

12 ‘‘(B) when other than under subsection (e) of 

13 this section rules are required by statute or at the 

14 discretion of the agency to be made on the record 

15 after opportunity for an agency hearing, sections 

16 556 and 557 shall apply, and paragraph (4), the re17 quirements of subsection (e) to receive comment out18 side of the procedures of sections 556 and 557, and 

19 the petition procedures of subsection (e)(6) shall not 

20 apply. 

21 The agency shall provide not fewer than 60 days for inter22 ested persons to submit written data, views, or argument 

23 (or 120 days in the case of a proposed major or high24 impact rule). 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
17 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(4)(A) Within 30 days of publication of notice of 

2 proposed rule making, a member of the public may peti3 tion for a hearing in accordance with section 556 to deter4 mine whether any evidence or other information upon 

5 which the agency bases the proposed rule fails to comply 

6 with the Information Quality Act. 

7 ‘‘(B)(i) The agency may, upon review of the petition, 

8 determine without further process to exclude from the rule 

9 making the evidence or other information that is the sub10 ject of the petition and, if appropriate, withdraw the pro11 posed rule. The agency shall promptly publish any such 

12 determination. 

13 ‘‘(ii) If the agency does not resolve the petition under 

14 the procedures of clause (i), it shall grant any such peti15 tion that presents a prima facie case that evidence or other 

16 information upon which the agency bases the proposed 

17 rule fails to comply with the Information Quality Act, hold 

18 the requested hearing not later than 30 days after receipt 

19 of the petition, provide a reasonable opportunity for cross20 examination at the hearing, and decide the issues pre21 sented by the petition not later than 60 days after receipt 

22 of the petition. The agency may deny any petition that 

23 it determines does not present such a prima facie case. 

24 ‘‘(C) There shall be no judicial review of the agency’s 

25 disposition of issues considered and decided or determined 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
18 

•HR 5 IH

1 under subparagraph (B)(ii) until judicial review of the 

2 agency’s final action. There shall be no judicial review of 

3 an agency’s determination to withdraw a proposed rule 

4 under subparagraph (B)(i) on the basis of the petition. 

5 ‘‘(D) Failure to petition for a hearing under this 

6 paragraph shall not preclude judicial review of any claim 

7 based on the Information Quality Act under chapter 7 of 

8 this title. 

9 ‘‘(e) HEARINGS FOR HIGH-IMPACT RULES.—Fol10 lowing notice of a proposed rule making, receipt of com11 ments on the proposed rule, and any hearing held under 

12 subsection (d)(4), and before adoption of any high-impact 

13 rule, the agency shall hold a hearing in accordance with 

14 sections 556 and 557, unless such hearing is waived by 

15 all participants in the rule making other than the agency. 

16 The agency shall provide a reasonable opportunity for 

17 cross-examination at such hearing. The hearing shall be 

18 limited to the following issues of fact, except that partici19 pants at the hearing other than the agency may waive de20 termination of any such issue: 

21 ‘‘(1) Whether the agency’s asserted factual 

22 predicate for the rule is supported by the evidence. 

23 ‘‘(2) Whether there is an alternative to the pro24 posed rule that would achieve the relevant statutory 

25 objectives at a lower cost (including all costs to be 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
19 

•HR 5 IH

1 considered under subsection (b)(6)) than the pro2 posed rule. 

3 ‘‘(3) If there is more than one alternative to the 

4 proposed rule that would achieve the relevant statu5 tory objectives at a lower cost than the proposed 

6 rule, which alternative would achieve the relevant 

7 statutory objectives at the lowest cost. 

8 ‘‘(4) Whether, if the agency proposes to adopt 

9 a rule that is more costly than the least costly alter10 native that would achieve the relevant statutory ob11 jectives (including all costs to be considered under 

12 subsection (b)(6)), the additional benefits of the 

13 more costly rule exceed the additional costs of the 

14 more costly rule. 

15 ‘‘(5) Whether the evidence and other informa16 tion upon which the agency bases the proposed rule 

17 meets the requirements of the Information Quality 

18 Act. 

19 ‘‘(6) Upon petition by an interested person who 

20 has participated in the rule making, other issues rel21 evant to the rule making, unless the agency deter22 mines that consideration of the issues at the hearing 

23 would not advance consideration of the rule or 

24 would, in light of the nature of the need for agency 

25 action, unreasonably delay completion of the rule 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
20 

•HR 5 IH

1 making. An agency shall grant or deny a petition 

2 under this paragraph within 30 days of its receipt 

3 of the petition. 

4 No later than 45 days before any hearing held under this 

5 subsection or sections 556 and 557, the agency shall pub6 lish in the Federal Register a notice specifying the pro7 posed rule to be considered at such hearing, the issues 

8 to be considered at the hearing, and the time and place 

9 for such hearing, except that such notice may be issued 

10 not later than 15 days before a hearing held under sub11 section (d)(4)(B). 

12 ‘‘(f) FINAL RULES.—(1) The agency shall adopt a 

13 rule only following consultation with the Administrator of 

14 the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs to facili15 tate compliance with applicable rule making requirements. 

16 ‘‘(2) The agency shall adopt a rule only on the basis 

17 of the best reasonably obtainable scientific, technical, eco18 nomic, and other evidence and information concerning the 

19 need for, consequences of, and alternatives to the rule. 

20 ‘‘(3)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the 

21 agency shall adopt the least costly rule considered during 

22 the rule making (including all costs to be considered under 

23 subsection (b)(6)) that meets relevant statutory objectives. 

24 ‘‘(B) The agency may adopt a rule that is more costly 

25 than the least costly alternative that would achieve the relVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:28 Jan 04, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5.IH H5

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
21 

•HR 5 IH

1 evant statutory objectives only if the additional benefits 

2 of the more costly rule justify its additional costs and only 

3 if the agency explains its reason for doing so based on 

4 interests of public health, safety or welfare that are clearly 

5 within the scope of the statutory provision authorizing the 

6 rule. 

7 ‘‘(4) When it adopts a final rule, the agency shall 

8 publish a notice of final rule making. The notice shall in9 clude— 

10 ‘‘(A) a concise, general statement of the rule’s 

11 basis and purpose; 

12 ‘‘(B) the agency’s reasoned final determination 

13 of need for a rule to address the problem the agency 

14 seeks to address with the rule, including a statement 

15 of whether a rule is required by statute and a sum16 mary of any final risk assessment or regulatory im17 pact analysis prepared by the agency; 

18 ‘‘(C) the agency’s reasoned final determination 

19 that the benefits of the rule meet the relevant statu20 tory objectives and justify the rule’s costs (including 

21 all costs to be considered under subsection (b)(6)); 

22 ‘‘(D) the agency’s reasoned final determination 

23 not to adopt any of the alternatives to the proposed 

24 rule considered by the agency during the rule mak25 ing, including— 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
22 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(i) the agency’s reasoned final determina2 tion that no alternative considered achieved the 

3 relevant statutory objectives with lower costs 

4 (including all costs to be considered under sub5 section (b)(6)) than the rule; or 

6 ‘‘(ii) the agency’s reasoned determination 

7 that its adoption of a more costly rule complies 

8 with subsection (f)(3)(B); 

9 ‘‘(E) the agency’s reasoned final determina10 tion— 

11 ‘‘(i) that existing rules have not created or 

12 contributed to the problem the agency seeks to 

13 address with the rule; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) that existing rules have created or 

15 contributed to the problem the agency seeks to 

16 address with the rule, and, if so— 

17 ‘‘(I) why amendment or rescission of 

18 such existing rules is not alone sufficient 

19 to respond to the problem; and 

20 ‘‘(II) whether and how the agency in21 tends to amend or rescind the existing rule 

22 separate from adoption of the rule; 

23 ‘‘(F) the agency’s reasoned final determination 

24 that the evidence and other information upon which 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
23 

•HR 5 IH

1 the agency bases the rule complies with the Informa2 tion Quality Act; 

3 ‘‘(G) the agency’s reasoned final determination 

4 that the rule meets the objectives that the agency 

5 identified in subsection (d)(1)(E)(iii) or that other 

6 objectives are more appropriate in light of the full 

7 administrative record and the rule meets those ob8 jectives; 

9 ‘‘(H) the agency’s reasoned final determination 

10 that it did not deviate from the metrics the agency 

11 included in subsection (d)(1)(E)(iii) or that other 

12 metrics are more appropriate in light of the full ad13 ministrative record and the agency did not deviate 

14 from those metrics; 

15 ‘‘(I)(i) for any major rule, high-impact rule, or 

16 negative-impact on jobs and wages rule, the agency’s 

17 plan for review of the rule no less than every ten 

18 years to determine whether, based upon evidence, 

19 there remains a need for the rule, whether the rule 

20 is in fact achieving statutory objectives, whether the 

21 rule’s benefits continue to justify its costs, and 

22 whether the rule can be modified or rescinded to re23 duce costs while continuing to achieve statutory ob24 jectives; and 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
24 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(ii) review of a rule under a plan required by 

2 clause (i) of this subparagraph shall take into ac3 count the factors and criteria set forth in sub4 sections (b) through (f) of section 553 of this title; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(J) for any negative-impact on jobs and wages 

7 rule, a statement that the head of the agency that 

8 made the rule approved the rule knowing about the 

9 findings and determination of the agency or the Ad10 ministrator of the Office of Information and Regu11 latory Affairs that qualified the rule as a negative 

12 impact on jobs and wages rule. 

13 All information considered by the agency in connection 

14 with its adoption of the rule, and, at the discretion of the 

15 President or the Administrator of the Office of Informa16 tion and Regulatory Affairs, information provided by that 

17 Office in consultations with the agency, shall be placed 

18 in the docket for the rule and made accessible to the public 

19 for the public’s use no later than when the rule is adopted. 

20 ‘‘(g) EXCEPTIONS FROM NOTICE AND HEARING RE21 QUIREMENTS.—(1) Except when notice or hearing is re22 quired by statute, the following do not apply to interpre23 tive rules, general statements of policy, or rules of agency 

24 organization, procedure, or practice: 

25 ‘‘(A) Subsections (c) through (e). 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
25 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(B) Paragraphs (1) through (3) of subsection 

2 (f). 

3 ‘‘(C) Subparagraphs (B) through (H) of sub4 section (f)(4). 

5 ‘‘(2)(A) When the agency for good cause, based upon 

6 evidence, finds (and incorporates the finding and a brief 

7 statement of reasons therefor in the rules issued) that 

8 compliance with subsection (c), (d), or (e) or requirements 

9 to render final determinations under subsection (f) of this 

10 section before the issuance of an interim rule is impracti11 cable or contrary to the public interest, including interests 

12 of national security, such subsections or requirements to 

13 render final determinations shall not apply to the agency’s 

14 adoption of an interim rule. 

15 ‘‘(B) If, following compliance with subparagraph (A) 

16 of this paragraph, the agency adopts an interim rule, it 

17 shall commence proceedings that comply fully with sub18 sections (d) through (f) of this section immediately upon 

19 publication of the interim rule, shall treat the publication 

20 of the interim rule as publication of a notice of proposed 

21 rule making and shall not be required to issue supple22 mental notice other than to complete full compliance with 

23 subsection (d). No less than 270 days from publication 

24 of the interim rule (or 18 months in the case of a major 

25 rule or high-impact rule), the agency shall complete rule 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
26 

•HR 5 IH

1 making under subsections (d) through (f) of this sub2 section and take final action to adopt a final rule or re3 scind the interim rule. If the agency fails to take timely 

4 final action, the interim rule will cease to have the effect 

5 of law. 

6 ‘‘(C) Other than in cases involving interests of na7 tional security, upon the agency’s publication of an interim 

8 rule without compliance with subsection (c), (d), or (e) or 

9 requirements to render final determinations under sub10 section (f) of this section, an interested party may seek 

11 immediate judicial review under chapter 7 of this title of 

12 the agency’s determination to adopt such interim rule. The 

13 record on such review shall include all documents and in14 formation considered by the agency and any additional in15 formation presented by a party that the court determines 

16 necessary to consider to assure justice. 

17 ‘‘(3) When the agency for good cause finds (and in18 corporates the finding and a brief statement of reasons 

19 therefor in the rules issued) that notice and public proce20 dure thereon are unnecessary, including because agency 

21 rule making is undertaken only to correct a de minimis 

22 technical or clerical error in a previously issued rule or 

23 for other noncontroversial purposes, the agency may pub24 lish a rule without compliance with subsection (c), (d), (e), 

25 or (f)(1)–(3) and (f)(4)(B)–(F). If the agency receives sigVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:28 Jan 04, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5.IH H5

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
27 

•HR 5 IH

1 nificant adverse comment within 60 days after publication 

2 of the rule, it shall treat the notice of the rule as a notice 

3 of proposed rule making and complete rule making in com4 pliance with subsections (d) and (f). 

5 ‘‘(h) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR HEARINGS.— 

6 When a hearing is required under subsection (e) or is oth7 erwise required by statute or at the agency’s discretion 

8 before adoption of a rule, the agency shall comply with 

9 the requirements of sections 556 and 557 in addition to 

10 the requirements of subsection (f) in adopting the rule and 

11 in providing notice of the rule’s adoption. 

12 ‘‘(i) DATE OF PUBLICATION OF RULE.—The required 

13 publication or service of a substantive final or interim rule 

14 shall be made not less than 30 days before the effective 

15 date of the rule, except— 

16 ‘‘(1) a substantive rule which grants or recog17 nizes an exemption or relieves a restriction; 

18 ‘‘(2) interpretive rules and statements of policy; 

19 or 

20 ‘‘(3) as otherwise provided by the agency for 

21 good cause found and published with the rule. 

22 ‘‘(j) RIGHT TO PETITION.—Each agency shall give 

23 an interested person the right to petition for the issuance, 

24 amendment, or repeal of a rule. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
28 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(k) RULE MAKING GUIDELINES.—(1)(A) The Ad2 ministrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory 

3 Affairs shall establish guidelines for the assessment, in4 cluding quantitative and qualitative assessment, of the 

5 costs and benefits of proposed and final rules and other 

6 economic issues or issues related to risk that are relevant 

7 to rule making under this title. The rigor of cost-benefit 

8 analysis required by such guidelines shall be commensu9 rate, in the Administrator’s determination, with the eco10 nomic impact of the rule. 

11 ‘‘(B) To ensure that agencies use the best available 

12 techniques to quantify and evaluate anticipated present 

13 and future benefits, costs, other economic issues, and risks 

14 as accurately as possible, the Administrator of the Office 

15 of Information and Regulatory Affairs shall regularly up16 date guidelines established under paragraph (1)(A) of this 

17 subsection. 

18 ‘‘(2) The Administrator of the Office of Information 

19 and Regulatory Affairs shall also issue guidelines to pro20 mote coordination, simplification and harmonization of 

21 agency rules during the rule making process and other22 wise. Such guidelines shall assure that each agency avoids 

23 regulations that are inconsistent or incompatible with, or 

24 duplicative of, its other regulations and those of other 

25 Federal agencies and drafts its regulations to be simple 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
29 

•HR 5 IH

1 and easy to understand, with the goal of minimizing the 

2 potential for uncertainty and litigation arising from such 

3 uncertainty. 

4 ‘‘(3) To ensure consistency in Federal rule making, 

5 the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regu6 latory Affairs shall— 

7 ‘‘(A) issue guidelines and otherwise take action 

8 to ensure that rule makings conducted in whole or 

9 in part under procedures specified in provisions of 

10 law other than those of subchapter II of this title 

11 conform to the fullest extent allowed by law with the 

12 procedures set forth in section 553 of this title; and 

13 ‘‘(B) issue guidelines for the conduct of hear14 ings under subsections 553(d)(4) and 553(e) of this 

15 section, including to assure a reasonable opportunity 

16 for cross-examination. Each agency shall adopt regu17 lations for the conduct of hearings consistent with 

18 the guidelines issued under this subparagraph. 

19 ‘‘(4) The Administrator of the Office of Information 

20 and Regulatory Affairs shall issue guidelines pursuant to 

21 the Information Quality Act to apply in rule making pro22 ceedings under sections 553, 556, and 557 of this title. 

23 In all cases, such guidelines, and the Administrator’s spe24 cific determinations regarding agency compliance with 

25 such guidelines, shall be entitled to judicial deference. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
30 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(l) INCLUSION IN THE RECORD OF CERTAIN DOCU2 MENTS AND INFORMATION.—The agency shall include in 

3 the record for a rule making, and shall make available by 

4 electronic means and otherwise, all documents and infor5 mation prepared or considered by the agency during the 

6 proceeding, including, at the discretion of the President 

7 or the Administrator of the Office of Information and Reg8 ulatory Affairs, documents and information communicated 

9 by that Office during consultation with the Agency. 

10 ‘‘(m) MONETARY POLICY EXEMPTION.—Nothing in 

11 subsection (b)(6), subparagraphs (F) and (G) of sub12 section (d)(1), subsection (e), subsection (f)(3), and sub13 paragraphs (C) and (D) of subsection (f)(5) shall apply 

14 to rule makings that concern monetary policy proposed or 

15 implemented by the Board of Governors of the Federal 

16 Reserve System or the Federal Open Market Committee.’’. 

17 SEC. 104. AGENCY GUIDANCE; PROCEDURES TO ISSUE 

18 MAJOR GUIDANCE; PRESIDENTIAL AUTHOR19 ITY TO ISSUE GUIDELINES FOR ISSUANCE OF 

20 GUIDANCE. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 of title 5, United 

22 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 553 the 

23 following new section: 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
31 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘§ 553a. Agency guidance; procedures to issue major 

2 guidance; authority to issue guidelines 

3 for issuance of guidance 

4 ‘‘(a) Before issuing any major guidance, or guidance 

5 that involves a novel legal or policy issue arising out of 

6 statutory mandates, an agency shall— 

7 ‘‘(1) make and document a reasoned determina8 tion that— 

9 ‘‘(A) assures that such guidance is under10 standable and complies with relevant statutory 

11 objectives and regulatory provisions (including 

12 any statutory deadlines for agency action); 

13 ‘‘(B) summarizes the evidence and data on 

14 which the agency will base the guidance; 

15 ‘‘(C) identifies the costs and benefits (in16 cluding all costs to be considered during a rule 

17 making under section 553(b) of this title) of 

18 conduct conforming to such guidance and 

19 assures that such benefits justify such costs; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(D) describes alternatives to such guid22 ance and their costs and benefits (including all 

23 costs to be considered during a rule making 

24 under section 553(b) of this title) and explains 

25 why the agency rejected those alternatives; and 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
32 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(2) confer with the Administrator of the Office 

2 of Information and Regulatory Affairs on the 

3 issuance of such guidance to assure that the guid4 ance is reasonable, understandable, consistent with 

5 relevant statutory and regulatory provisions and re6 quirements or practices of other agencies, does not 

7 produce costs that are unjustified by the guidance’s 

8 benefits, and is otherwise appropriate. 

9 Upon issuing major guidance, or guidance that involves 

10 a novel legal or policy issue arising out of statutory man11 dates, the agency shall publish the documentation required 

12 by subparagraph (1) by electronic means and otherwise. 

13 ‘‘(b) Agency guidance— 

14 ‘‘(1) is not legally binding and may not be re15 lied upon by an agency as legal grounds for agency 

16 action; 

17 ‘‘(2) shall state in a plain, prominent and per18 manent manner that it is not legally binding; and 

19 ‘‘(3) shall, at the time it is issued or upon re20 quest, be made available by the issuing agency to in21 terested persons and the public by electronic means 

22 and otherwise. 

23 Agencies shall avoid the issuance of guidance that is in24 consistent or incompatible with, or duplicative of, the 

25 agency’s governing statutes or regulations, with the goal 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
33 

•HR 5 IH

1 of minimizing the potential for uncertainty and litigation 

2 arising from such uncertainty. 

3 ‘‘(c) The Administrator of the Office of Information 

4 and Regulatory Affairs shall have authority to issue guide5 lines for use by the agencies in the issuance of major guid6 ance and other guidance. Such guidelines shall assure that 

7 each agency avoids issuing guidance documents that are 

8 inconsistent or incompatible with, or duplicative of, the 

9 law, its other regulations, or the regulations of other Fed10 eral agencies and drafts its guidance documents to be sim11 ple and easy to understand, with the goal of minimizing 

12 the potential for uncertainty and litigation arising from 

13 such uncertainty.’’. 

14 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

15 for chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code, is amended 

16 by inserting after the item relating to section 553 the fol17 lowing new item: 

‘‘553a. Agency guidance; procedures to issue major guidance; authority to issue 

guidelines for issuance of guidance.’’. 

18 SEC. 105. HEARINGS; PRESIDING EMPLOYEES; POWERS AND 

19 DUTIES; BURDEN OF PROOF; EVIDENCE; 

20 RECORD AS BASIS OF DECISION. 

21 Section 556 of title 5, United States Code, is amend22 ed by striking subsection (e) and inserting the following: 

23 ‘‘(e)(1) The transcript of testimony and exhibits, to24 gether with all papers and requests filed in the proceeding, 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
34 

•HR 5 IH

1 constitutes the exclusive record for decision in accordance 

2 with section 557 and shall be made available to the parties 

3 and the public by electronic means and, upon payment of 

4 lawfully prescribed costs, otherwise. When an agency deci5 sion rests on official notice of a material fact not appear6 ing in the evidence in the record, a party is entitled, on 

7 timely request, to an opportunity to show the contrary. 

8 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of this sub9 section, in a proceeding held under this section pursuant 

10 to section 553(d)(4) or 553(e), the record for decision 

11 shall also include any information that is part of the 

12 record of proceedings under section 553. 

13 ‘‘(f) When an agency conducts rule making under this 

14 section and section 557 directly after concluding pro15 ceedings upon an advance notice of proposed rule making 

16 under section 553(c), the matters to be considered and 

17 determinations to be made shall include, among other rel18 evant matters and determinations, the matters and deter19 minations described in subsections (b) and (f) of section 

20 553. 

21 ‘‘(g) Upon receipt of a petition for a hearing under 

22 this section, the agency shall grant the petition in the case 

23 of any major rule, unless the agency reasonably deter24 mines that a hearing would not advance consideration of 

25 the rule or would, in light of the need for agency action, 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
35 

•HR 5 IH

1 unreasonably delay completion of the rule making. The 

2 agency shall publish its decision to grant or deny the peti3 tion when it renders the decision, including an explanation 

4 of the grounds for decision. The information contained in 

5 the petition shall in all cases be included in the adminis6 trative record. This subsection shall not apply to rule mak7 ings that concern monetary policy proposed or imple8 mented by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 

9 System or the Federal Open Market Committee.’’. 

10 SEC. 106. ACTIONS REVIEWABLE. 

11 Section 704 of title 5, United States Code, is amend12 ed— 

13 (1) by striking ‘‘Agency action made’’ and in14 serting ‘‘(a) Agency action made’’; and 

15 (2) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘Denial 

16 by an agency of a correction request or, where ad17 ministrative appeal is provided for, denial of an ap18 peal, under an administrative mechanism described 

19 in subsection (b)(2)(B) of the Information Quality 

20 Act, or the failure of an agency within 90 days to 

21 grant or deny such request or appeal, shall be final 

22 action for purposes of this section. 

23 ‘‘(b) Other than in cases involving interests of na24 tional security, notwithstanding subsection (a) of this sec25 tion, upon the agency’s publication of an interim rule withVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:28 Jan 04, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00035 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5.IH H5

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
36 

•HR 5 IH

1 out compliance with section 553(c), (d), or (e) or require2 ments to render final determinations under subsection (f) 

3 of section 553, an interested party may seek immediate 

4 judicial review under this chapter of the agency’s deter5 mination to adopt such rule on an interim basis. Review 

6 shall be limited to whether the agency abused its discre7 tion to adopt the interim rule without compliance with sec8 tion 553(c), (d), or (e) or without rendering final deter9 minations under subsection (f) of section 553.’’. 

10 SEC. 107. SCOPE OF REVIEW. 

11 Section 706 of title 5, United States Code is amend12 ed— 

13 (1) by striking ‘‘To the extent necessary’’ and 

14 inserting ‘‘(a) To the extent necessary’’; 

15 (2) in paragraph (2)(A) of subsection (b) (as 

16 designated by section 202 of this Act), by inserting 

17 after ‘‘in accordance with law’’ the following: ‘‘(in18 cluding the Information Quality Act)’’; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(c) The court shall not defer to the agency’s— 

21 ‘‘(1) determination of the costs and benefits or 

22 other economic or risk assessment of the action, if 

23 the agency failed to conform to guidelines on such 

24 determinations and assessments established by the 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
37 

•HR 5 IH

1 Administrator of the Office of Information and Reg2 ulatory Affairs under section 553(k); 

3 ‘‘(2) determinations made in the adoption of an 

4 interim rule; or 

5 ‘‘(3) guidance. 

6 ‘‘(d) The court shall review agency denials of peti7 tions under section 553(e)(6) or any other petition for a 

8 hearing under sections 556 and 557 for abuse of agency 

9 discretion.’’. 

10 SEC. 108. ADDED DEFINITION. 

11 Section 701(b) of title 5, United States Code, is 

12 amended— 

13 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

14 end; 

15 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at 

16 the end, and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

17 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(3) ‘substantial evidence’ means such relevant 

19 evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as ade20 quate to support a conclusion in light of the record 

21 considered as a whole, taking into account whatever 

22 in the record fairly detracts from the weight of the 

23 evidence relied upon by the agency to support its de24 cision.’’. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
38 

•HR 5 IH

1 SEC. 109. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

2 The amendments made by this title to— 

3 (1) sections 553, 556, and 704 of title 5, 

4 United States Code; 

5 (2) subsection (b) of section 701 of such title; 

6 (3) paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 706(c) of 

7 such title; and 

8 (4) subsection (d) of section 706 of such title, 

9 shall not apply to any rule makings pending or completed 

10 on the date of enactment of this title. 

11 TITLE II—SEPARATION OF 

12 POWERS RESTORATION ACT 

13 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

14 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Separation of Powers 

15 Restoration Act’’. 

16 SEC. 202. JUDICIAL REVIEW OF STATUTORY AND REGU17 LATORY INTERPRETATIONS. 

18 Section 706 of title 5, United States Code, as amend19 ed by this Act, is further amended— 

20 (1) in subsection (a) (as designated by section 

21 107 of this Act)— 

22 (A) by striking ‘‘decide all relevant ques23 tions of law, interpret constitutional and statu24 tory provisions, and’’; and 

25 (B) by inserting after ‘‘of the terms of an 

26 agency action’’ the following ‘‘and decide de 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
39 

•HR 5 IH

1 novo all relevant questions of law, including the 

2 interpretation of constitutional and statutory 

3 provisions, and rules made by agencies. Not4 withstanding any other provision of law, this 

5 subsection shall apply in any action for judicial 

6 review of agency action authorized under any 

7 provision of law. No law may exempt any such 

8 civil action from the application of this section 

9 except by specific reference to this section’’; and 

10 (2) by striking ‘‘The reviewing court shall—’’ 

11 and inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘(b) The reviewing court shall—’’. 

13 TITLE III—SMALL BUSINESS 

14 REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY 

15 IMPROVEMENTS ACT 

16 SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE. 

17 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Small Business Regu18 latory Flexibility Improvements Act’’. 

19 SEC. 302. CLARIFICATION AND EXPANSION OF RULES COV20 ERED BY THE REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY 

21 ACT. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (2) of section 601 of 

23 title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
40 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(2) RULE.—The term ‘rule’ has the meaning 

2 given such term in section 551(4) of this title, ex3 cept that such term does not include— 

4 ‘‘(A) a rule pertaining to the protection of 

5 the rights of and benefits for veterans or part 

6 232 of title 32 of the Code of Federal Regula7 tions (as in effect on July 1, 2014) or any suc8 cessor provisions thereto; or 

9 ‘‘(B) a rule of particular (and not general) 

10 applicability relating to rates, wages, corporate 

11 or financial structures or reorganizations there12 of, prices, facilities, appliances, services, or al13 lowances therefor or to valuations, costs or ac14 counting, or practices relating to such rates, 

15 wages, structures, prices, appliances, services, 

16 or allowances.’’. 

17 (b) INCLUSION OF RULES WITH INDIRECT EF18 FECTS.—Section 601 of title 5, United States Code, is 

19 amended by adding at the end the following new para20 graph: 

21 ‘‘(9) ECONOMIC IMPACT.—The term ‘economic 

22 impact’ means, with respect to a proposed or final 

23 rule— 

24 ‘‘(A) any direct economic effect on small 

25 entities of such rule; and 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
41 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(B) any indirect economic effect (includ2 ing compliance costs and effects on revenue) on 

3 small entities which is reasonably foreseeable 

4 and results from such rule (without regard to 

5 whether small entities will be directly regulated 

6 by the rule).’’. 

7 (c) INCLUSION OF RULES WITH BENEFICIAL EF8 FECTS.— 

9 (1) INITIAL REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY ANAL10 YSIS.—Subsection (c) of section 603 of title 5, 

11 United States Code, is amended by striking the first 

12 sentence and inserting ‘‘Each initial regulatory flexi13 bility analysis shall also contain a detailed descrip14 tion of alternatives to the proposed rule which mini15 mize any adverse significant economic impact or 

16 maximize any beneficial significant economic impact 

17 on small entities.’’. 

18 (2) FINAL REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY ANAL19 YSIS.—The first paragraph (6) of section 604(a) of 

20 title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking 

21 ‘‘minimize the significant economic impact’’ and in22 serting ‘‘minimize the adverse significant economic 

23 impact or maximize the beneficial significant eco24 nomic impact’’. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
42 

•HR 5 IH

1 (d) INCLUSION OF RULES AFFECTING TRIBAL ORGA2 NIZATIONS.—Paragraph (5) of section 601 of title 5, 

3 United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘and tribal 

4 organizations (as defined in section 4(l) of the Indian Self5 Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 

6 450b(l))),’’ after ‘‘special districts,’’. 

7 (e) INCLUSION OF LAND MANAGEMENT PLANS AND

8 FORMAL RULEMAKING.— 

9 (1) INITIAL REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY ANAL10 YSIS.—Subsection (a) of section 603 of title 5, 

11 United States Code, is amended in the first sen12 tence— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ after ‘‘proposed 

14 rule,’’; and 

15 (B) by inserting ‘‘or publishes a revision or 

16 amendment to a land management plan,’’ after 

17 ‘‘United States,’’. 

18 (2) FINAL REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY ANAL19 YSIS.—Subsection (a) of section 604 of title 5, 

20 United States Code, is amended in the first sen21 tence— 

22 (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ after ‘‘proposed rule23 making,’’; and 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
43 

•HR 5 IH

1 (B) by inserting ‘‘or adopts a revision or 

2 amendment to a land management plan,’’ after 

3 ‘‘section 603(a),’’. 

4 (3) LAND MANAGEMENT PLAN DEFINED.—Sec5 tion 601 of title 5, United States Code, is amended 

6 by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(10) LAND MANAGEMENT PLAN.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘land man9 agement plan’ means— 

10 ‘‘(i) any plan developed by the Sec11 retary of Agriculture under section 6 of 

12 the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Re13 sources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 

14 1604); and 

15 ‘‘(ii) any plan developed by the Sec16 retary of the Interior under section 202 of 

17 the Federal Land Policy and Management 

18 Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1712). 

19 ‘‘(B) REVISION.—The term ‘revision’ 

20 means any change to a land management plan 

21 which— 

22 ‘‘(i) in the case of a plan described in 

23 subparagraph (A)(i), is made under section 

24 6(f)(5) of the Forest and Rangeland ReVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:28 Jan 04, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00043 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5.IH H5

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
44 

•HR 5 IH

1 newable Resources Planning Act of 1974 

2 (16 U.S.C. 1604(f)(5)); or 

3 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a plan described in 

4 subparagraph (A)(ii), is made under sec5 tion 1610.5–6 of title 43, Code of Federal 

6 Regulations (or any successor regulation). 

7 ‘‘(C) AMENDMENT.—The term ‘amend8 ment’ means any change to a land management 

9 plan which— 

10 ‘‘(i) in the case of a plan described in 

11 subparagraph (A)(i), is made under section 

12 6(f)(4) of the Forest and Rangeland Re13 newable Resources Planning Act of 1974 

14 (16 U.S.C. 1604(f)(4)) and with respect to 

15 which the Secretary of Agriculture pre16 pares a statement described in section 

17 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental 

18 Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

19 4332(2)(C)); or 

20 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a plan described in 

21 subparagraph (A)(ii), is made under sec22 tion 1610.5–5 of title 43, Code of Federal 

23 Regulations (or any successor regulation) 

24 and with respect to which the Secretary of 

25 the Interior prepares a statement described 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
45 

•HR 5 IH

1 in section 102(2)(C) of the National Envi2 ronmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

3 4332(2)(C)).’’. 

4 (f) INCLUSION OF CERTAIN INTERPRETIVE RULES

5 INVOLVING THE INTERNAL REVENUE LAWS.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 

7 603 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by 

8 striking the period at the end and inserting ‘‘or a 

9 recordkeeping requirement, and without regard to 

10 whether such requirement is imposed by statute or 

11 regulation.’’. 

12 (2) COLLECTION OF INFORMATION.—Paragraph 

13 (7) of section 601 of title 5, United States Code, is 

14 amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(7) COLLECTION OF INFORMATION.—The term 

16 ‘collection of information’ has the meaning given 

17 such term in section 3502(3) of title 44.’’. 

18 (3) RECORDKEEPING REQUIREMENT.—Para19 graph (8) of section 601 of title 5, United States 

20 Code, is amended to read as follows: 

21 ‘‘(8) RECORDKEEPING REQUIREMENT.—The 

22 term ‘recordkeeping requirement’ has the meaning 

23 given such term in section 3502(13) of title 44.’’. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
46 

•HR 5 IH

1 (g) DEFINITION OF SMALL ORGANIZATION.—Para2 graph (4) of section 601 of title 5, United States Code, 

3 is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(4) SMALL ORGANIZATION.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘small orga6 nization’ means any not-for-profit enterprise 

7 which, as of the issuance of the notice of pro8 posed rulemaking— 

9 ‘‘(i) in the case of an enterprise which 

10 is described by a classification code of the 

11 North American Industrial Classification 

12 System, does not exceed the size standard 

13 established by the Administrator of the 

14 Small Business Administration pursuant to 

15 section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 

16 U.S.C. 632) for small business concerns 

17 described by such classification code; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) in the case of any other enter19 prise, has a net worth that does not exceed 

20 $7 million and has not more than 500 em21 ployees. 

22 ‘‘(B) LOCAL LABOR ORGANIZATIONS.—In 

23 the case of any local labor organization, sub24 paragraph (A) shall be applied without regard 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
47 

•HR 5 IH

1 to any national or international organization of 

2 which such local labor organization is a part. 

3 ‘‘(C) AGENCY DEFINITIONS.—Subpara4 graphs (A) and (B) shall not apply to the ex5 tent that an agency, after consultation with the 

6 Office of Advocacy of the Small Business Ad7 ministration and after opportunity for public 

8 comment, establishes one or more definitions 

9 for such term which are appropriate to the ac10 tivities of the agency and publishes such defini11 tions in the Federal Register.’’. 

12 SEC. 303. EXPANSION OF REPORT OF REGULATORY AGEN13 DA. 

14 Section 602 of title 5, United States Code, is amend15 ed— 

16 (1) in subsection (a)— 

17 (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘, and’’ 

18 at the end and inserting ‘‘;’’; 

19 (B) by redesignating paragraph (3) as 

20 paragraph (4); and 

21 (C) by inserting after paragraph (2) the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘(3) a brief description of the sector of the 

24 North American Industrial Classification System 

25 that is primarily affected by any rule which the 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
48 

•HR 5 IH

1 agency expects to propose or promulgate which is 

2 likely to have a significant economic impact on a 

3 substantial number of small entities; and’’; and 

4 (2) in subsection (c), to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘(c) Each agency shall prominently display a plain 

6 language summary of the information contained in the 

7 regulatory flexibility agenda published under subsection 

8 (a) on its website within 3 days of its publication in the 

9 Federal Register. The Office of Advocacy of the Small 

10 Business Administration shall compile and prominently 

11 display a plain language summary of the regulatory agen12 das referenced in subsection (a) for each agency on its 

13 website within 3 days of their publication in the Federal 

14 Register.’’. 

15 SEC. 304. REQUIREMENTS PROVIDING FOR MORE DE16 TAILED ANALYSES. 

17 (a) INITIAL REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY ANALYSIS.— 

18 Subsection (b) of section 603 of title 5, United States 

19 Code, is amended to read as follows: 

20 ‘‘(b) Each initial regulatory flexibility analysis re21 quired under this section shall contain a detailed state22 ment— 

23 ‘‘(1) describing the reasons why action by the 

24 agency is being considered; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
49 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(2) describing the objectives of, and legal basis 

2 for, the proposed rule; 

3 ‘‘(3) estimating the number and type of small 

4 entities to which the proposed rule will apply; 

5 ‘‘(4) describing the projected reporting, record6 keeping, and other compliance requirements of the 

7 proposed rule, including an estimate of the classes of 

8 small entities which will be subject to the require9 ment and the type of professional skills necessary 

10 for preparation of the report and record; 

11 ‘‘(5) describing all relevant Federal rules which 

12 may duplicate, overlap, or conflict with the proposed 

13 rule, or the reasons why such a description could not 

14 be provided; 

15 ‘‘(6) estimating the additional cumulative eco16 nomic impact of the proposed rule on small entities 

17 beyond that already imposed on the class of small 

18 entities by the agency or why such an estimate is 

19 not available; 

20 ‘‘(7) describing any disproportionate economic 

21 impact on small entities or a specific class of small 

22 entities; and 

23 ‘‘(8) describing any impairment of the ability of 

24 small entities to have access to credit.’’. 

25 (b) FINAL REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY ANALYSIS.— 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
50 

•HR 5 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 604(a) of title 5, 

2 United States Code, is amended— 

3 (A) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘an ex4 planation’’ and inserting ‘‘a detailed expla5 nation’’; 

6 (B) in each of paragraphs (4), (5), and the 

7 first paragraph (6), by inserting ‘‘detailed’’ be8 fore ‘‘description’’; 

9 (C) in the first paragraph (6), by striking 

10 ‘‘; and’’ at the end; 

11 (D) in the second paragraph (6), by strik12 ing the period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

13 (E) by redesignating the second paragraph 

14 (6) as paragraph (7); and 

15 (F) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(8) a detailed description of any dispropor17 tionate economic impact on small entities or a spe18 cific class of small entities.’’. 

19 (2) INCLUSION OF RESPONSE TO COMMENTS ON

20 CERTIFICATION OF PROPOSED RULE.—Paragraph 

21 (2) of section 604(a) of title 5, United States Code, 

22 is amended by inserting ‘‘(or certification of the pro23 posed rule under section 605(b))’’ after ‘‘initial reg24 ulatory flexibility analysis’’. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
51 

•HR 5 IH

1 (3) PUBLICATION OF ANALYSIS ON WEBSITE.— 

2 Subsection (b) of section 604 of title 5, United 

3 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(b) The agency shall make copies of the final regu5 latory flexibility analysis available to the public, including 

6 placement of the entire analysis on the agency’s website, 

7 and shall publish in the Federal Register the final regu8 latory flexibility analysis, or a summary thereof which in9 cludes the telephone number, mailing address, and link to 

10 the website where the complete analysis may be ob11 tained.’’. 

12 (c) CROSS-REFERENCES TO OTHER ANALYSES.— 

13 Subsection (a) of section 605 of title 5, United States 

14 Code, is amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(a) A Federal agency shall be treated as satisfying 

16 any requirement regarding the content of an agenda or 

17 regulatory flexibility analysis under section 602, 603, or 

18 604, if such agency provides in such agenda or analysis 

19 a cross-reference to the specific portion of another agenda 

20 or analysis which is required by any other law and which 

21 satisfies such requirement.’’. 

22 (d) CERTIFICATIONS.—Subsection (b) of section 605 

23 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

24 (1) by inserting ‘‘detailed’’ before ‘‘statement’’ 

25 the first place it appears; and 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
52 

•HR 5 IH

1 (2) by inserting ‘‘and legal’’ after ‘‘factual’’. 

2 (e) QUANTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Section 607 

3 of title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as fol4 lows: 

5 ‘‘§ 607. Quantification requirements 

6 ‘‘In complying with sections 603 and 604, an agency 

7 shall provide— 

8 ‘‘(1) a quantifiable or numerical description of 

9 the effects of the proposed or final rule and alter10 natives to the proposed or final rule; or 

11 ‘‘(2) a more general descriptive statement and 

12 a detailed statement explaining why quantification is 

13 not practicable or reliable.’’. 

14 SEC. 305. REPEAL OF WAIVER AND DELAY AUTHORITY; AD15 DITIONAL POWERS OF THE CHIEF COUNSEL 

16 FOR ADVOCACY. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 608 of title 5, United 

18 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

19 ‘‘§ 608. Additional powers of Chief Counsel for Advo20 cacy 

21 ‘‘(a)(1) Not later than 270 days after the date of the 

22 enactment of this section, the Chief Counsel for Advocacy 

23 of the Small Business Administration shall, after oppor24 tunity for notice and comment under section 553, issue 

25 rules governing agency compliance with this chapter. The 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
53 

•HR 5 IH

1 Chief Counsel may modify or amend such rules after no2 tice and comment under section 553. This chapter (other 

3 than this subsection) shall not apply with respect to the 

4 issuance, modification, and amendment of rules under this 

5 paragraph. 

6 ‘‘(2) An agency shall not issue rules which supple7 ment the rules issued under subsection (a) unless such 

8 agency has first consulted with the Chief Counsel for Ad9 vocacy to ensure that such supplemental rules comply with 

10 this chapter and the rules issued under paragraph (1). 

11 ‘‘(b) Notwithstanding any other law, the Chief Coun12 sel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration 

13 may intervene in any agency adjudication (unless such 

14 agency is authorized to impose a fine or penalty under 

15 such adjudication), and may inform the agency of the im16 pact that any decision on the record may have on small 

17 entities. The Chief Counsel shall not initiate an appeal 

18 with respect to any adjudication in which the Chief Coun19 sel intervenes under this subsection. 

20 ‘‘(c) The Chief Counsel for Advocacy may file com21 ments in response to any agency notice requesting com22 ment, regardless of whether the agency is required to file 

23 a general notice of proposed rulemaking under section 

24 553.’’. 

25 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
54 

•HR 5 IH

1 (1) Section 611(a)(1) of such title is amended 

2 by striking ‘‘608(b),’’. 

3 (2) Section 611(a)(2) of such title is amended 

4 by striking ‘‘608(b),’’. 

5 (3) Section 611(a)(3) of such title is amend6 ed— 

7 (A) by striking subparagraph (B); and 

8 (B) by striking ‘‘(3)(A) A small entity’’ 

9 and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(3) A small entity’’. 

11 SEC. 306. PROCEDURES FOR GATHERING COMMENTS. 

12 Section 609 of title 5, United States Code, is amend13 ed by striking subsection (b) and all that follows through 

14 the end of the section and inserting the following: 

15 ‘‘(b)(1) Prior to publication of any proposed rule de16 scribed in subsection (e), an agency making such rule shall 

17 notify the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Busi18 ness Administration and provide the Chief Counsel with— 

19 ‘‘(A) all materials prepared or utilized by the 

20 agency in making the proposed rule, including the 

21 draft of the proposed rule; and 

22 ‘‘(B) information on the potential adverse and 

23 beneficial economic impacts of the proposed rule on 

24 small entities and the type of small entities that 

25 might be affected. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
55 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(2) An agency shall not be required under para2 graph (1) to provide the exact language of any draft if 

3 the rule— 

4 ‘‘(A) relates to the internal revenue laws of the 

5 United States; or 

6 ‘‘(B) is proposed by an independent regulatory 

7 agency (as defined in section 3502(5) of title 44). 

8 ‘‘(c) Not later than 15 days after the receipt of such 

9 materials and information under subsection (b), the Chief 

10 Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administra11 tion shall— 

12 ‘‘(1) identify small entities or representatives of 

13 small entities or a combination of both for the pur14 pose of obtaining advice, input, and recommenda15 tions from those persons about the potential eco16 nomic impacts of the proposed rule and the compli17 ance of the agency with section 603; and 

18 ‘‘(2) convene a review panel consisting of an 

19 employee from the Office of Advocacy of the Small 

20 Business Administration, an employee from the 

21 agency making the rule, and in the case of an agen22 cy other than an independent regulatory agency (as 

23 defined in section 3502(5) of title 44), an employee 

24 from the Office of Information and Regulatory Af25 fairs of the Office of Management and Budget to reVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:28 Jan 04, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00055 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5.IH H5

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
56 

•HR 5 IH

1 view the materials and information provided to the 

2 Chief Counsel under subsection (b). 

3 ‘‘(d)(1) Not later than 60 days after the review panel 

4 described in subsection (c)(2) is convened, the Chief Coun5 sel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration 

6 shall, after consultation with the members of such panel, 

7 submit a report to the agency and, in the case of an agen8 cy other than an independent regulatory agency (as de9 fined in section 3502(5) of title 44), the Office of Informa10 tion and Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Management 

11 and Budget. 

12 ‘‘(2) Such report shall include an assessment of the 

13 economic impact of the proposed rule on small entities, 

14 including an assessment of the proposed rule’s impact on 

15 the cost that small entities pay for energy, an assessment 

16 of the proposed rule’s impact on startup costs for small 

17 entities, and a discussion of any alternatives that will min18 imize adverse significant economic impacts or maximize 

19 beneficial significant economic impacts on small entities. 

20 ‘‘(3) Such report shall become part of the rulemaking 

21 record. In the publication of the proposed rule, the agency 

22 shall explain what actions, if any, the agency took in re23 sponse to such report. 

24 ‘‘(e) A proposed rule is described by this subsection 

25 if the Administrator of the Office of Information and RegVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:28 Jan 04, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00056 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5.IH H5

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
57 

•HR 5 IH

1 ulatory Affairs of the Office of Management and Budget, 

2 the head of the agency (or the delegatee of the head of 

3 the agency), or an independent regulatory agency deter4 mines that the proposed rule is likely to result in— 

5 ‘‘(1) an annual effect on the economy of $100 

6 million or more; 

7 ‘‘(2) a major increase in costs or prices for con8 sumers, individual industries, Federal, State, or local 

9 governments, tribal organizations, or geographic re10 gions; 

11 ‘‘(3) significant adverse effects on competition, 

12 employment, investment, productivity, innovation, or 

13 on the ability of United States-based enterprises to 

14 compete with foreign-based enterprises in domestic 

15 and export markets; or 

16 ‘‘(4) a significant economic impact on a sub17 stantial number of small entities. 

18 ‘‘(f) Upon application by the agency, the Chief Coun19 sel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration 

20 may waive the requirements of subsections (b) through (e) 

21 if the Chief Counsel determines that compliance with the 

22 requirements of such subsections are impracticable, un23 necessary, or contrary to the public interest. 

24 ‘‘(g) A small entity or a representative of a small enti25 ty may submit a request that the agency provide a copy 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
58 

•HR 5 IH

1 of the report prepared under subsection (d) and all mate2 rials and information provided to the Chief Counsel for 

3 Advocacy of the Small Business Administration under 

4 subsection (b). The agency receiving such request shall 

5 provide the report, materials and information to the re6 questing small entity or representative of a small entity 

7 not later than 10 business days after receiving such re8 quest, except that the agency shall not disclose any infor9 mation that is prohibited from disclosure to the public 

10 pursuant to section 552(b) of this title.’’. 

11 SEC. 307. PERIODIC REVIEW OF RULES. 

12 Section 610 of title 5, United States Code, is amend13 ed to read as follows: 

14 ‘‘§ 610. Periodic review of rules 

15 ‘‘(a) Not later than 180 days after the enactment of 

16 this section, each agency shall publish in the Federal Reg17 ister and place on its website a plan for the periodic review 

18 of rules issued by the agency which the head of the agency 

19 determines have a significant economic impact on a sub20 stantial number of small entities. Such determination shall 

21 be made without regard to whether the agency performed 

22 an analysis under section 604. The purpose of the review 

23 shall be to determine whether such rules should be contin24 ued without change, or should be amended or rescinded, 

25 consistent with the stated objectives of applicable statutes, 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
59 

•HR 5 IH

1 to minimize any adverse significant economic impacts or 

2 maximize any beneficial significant economic impacts on 

3 a substantial number of small entities. Such plan may be 

4 amended by the agency at any time by publishing the revi5 sion in the Federal Register and subsequently placing the 

6 amended plan on the agency’s website. 

7 ‘‘(b) The plan shall provide for the review of all such 

8 agency rules existing on the date of the enactment of this 

9 section within 10 years of the date of publication of the 

10 plan in the Federal Register and for review of rules adopt11 ed after the date of enactment of this section within 10 

12 years after the publication of the final rule in the Federal 

13 Register. If the head of the agency determines that com14 pletion of the review of existing rules is not feasible by 

15 the established date, the head of the agency shall so certify 

16 in a statement published in the Federal Register and may 

17 extend the review for not longer than 2 years after publi18 cation of notice of extension in the Federal Register. Such 

19 certification and notice shall be sent to the Chief Counsel 

20 for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration and 

21 the Congress. 

22 ‘‘(c) The plan shall include a section that details how 

23 an agency will conduct outreach to and meaningfully in24 clude small businesses (including small business concerns 

25 owned and controlled by women, small business concerns 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
60 

•HR 5 IH

1 owned and controlled by veterans, and small business con2 cerns owned and controlled by socially and economically 

3 disadvantaged individuals (as such terms are defined in 

4 the Small Business Act)) for the purposes of carrying out 

5 this section. The agency shall include in this section a plan 

6 for how the agency will contact small businesses and gath7 er their input on existing agency rules. 

8 ‘‘(d) Each agency shall annually submit a report re9 garding the results of its review pursuant to such plan 

10 to the Congress, the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the 

11 Small Business Administration, and, in the case of agen12 cies other than independent regulatory agencies (as de13 fined in section 3502(5) of title 44) to the Administrator 

14 of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of the 

15 Office of Management and Budget. Such report shall in16 clude the identification of any rule with respect to which 

17 the head of the agency made a determination described 

18 in paragraph (5) or (6) of subsection (e) and a detailed 

19 explanation of the reasons for such determination. 

20 ‘‘(e) In reviewing a rule pursuant to subsections (a) 

21 through (d), the agency shall amend or rescind the rule 

22 to minimize any adverse significant economic impact on 

23 a substantial number of small entities or disproportionate 

24 economic impact on a specific class of small entities, or 

25 maximize any beneficial significant economic impact of the 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
61 

•HR 5 IH

1 rule on a substantial number of small entities to the great2 est extent possible, consistent with the stated objectives 

3 of applicable statutes. In amending or rescinding the rule, 

4 the agency shall consider the following factors: 

5 ‘‘(1) The continued need for the rule. 

6 ‘‘(2) The nature of complaints received by the 

7 agency from small entities concerning the rule. 

8 ‘‘(3) Comments by the Regulatory Enforcement 

9 Ombudsman and the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of 

10 the Small Business Administration. 

11 ‘‘(4) The complexity of the rule. 

12 ‘‘(5) The extent to which the rule overlaps, du13 plicates, or conflicts with other Federal rules and, 

14 unless the head of the agency determines it to be in15 feasible, State, territorial, and local rules. 

16 ‘‘(6) The contribution of the rule to the cumu17 lative economic impact of all Federal rules on the 

18 class of small entities affected by the rule, unless the 

19 head of the agency determines that such calculations 

20 cannot be made and reports that determination in 

21 the annual report required under subsection (d). 

22 ‘‘(7) The length of time since the rule has been 

23 evaluated or the degree to which technology, eco24 nomic conditions, or other factors have changed in 

25 the area affected by the rule. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
62 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(f) Each year, each agency shall publish in the Fed2 eral Register and on its website a list of rules to be re3 viewed pursuant to such plan. The agency shall include 

4 in the publication a solicitation of public comments on any 

5 further inclusions or exclusions of rules from the list, and 

6 shall respond to such comments. Such publication shall 

7 include a brief description of the rule, the reason why the 

8 agency determined that it has a significant economic im9 pact on a substantial number of small entities (without 

10 regard to whether it had prepared a final regulatory flexi11 bility analysis for the rule), and request comments from 

12 the public, the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 

13 Business Administration, and the Regulatory Enforce14 ment Ombudsman concerning the enforcement of the 

15 rule.’’. 

16 SEC. 308. JUDICIAL REVIEW OF COMPLIANCE WITH THE RE17 QUIREMENTS OF THE REGULATORY FLEXI18 BILITY ACT AVAILABLE AFTER PUBLICATION 

19 OF THE FINAL RULE. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) of section 611(a) 

21 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking 

22 ‘‘final agency action’’ and inserting ‘‘such rule’’. 

23 (b) JURISDICTION.—Paragraph (2) of such section is 

24 amended by inserting ‘‘(or which would have such jurisdicVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:28 Jan 04, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00062 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5.IH H5

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
63 

•HR 5 IH

1 tion if publication of the final rule constituted final agency 

2 action)’’ after ‘‘provision of law,’’. 

3 (c) TIME FOR BRINGING ACTION.—Paragraph (3) of 

4 such section is amended— 

5 (1) by striking ‘‘final agency action’’ and insert6 ing ‘‘publication of the final rule’’; and 

7 (2) by inserting ‘‘, in the case of a rule for 

8 which the date of final agency action is the same 

9 date as the publication of the final rule,’’ after ‘‘ex10 cept that’’. 

11 (d) INTERVENTION BY CHIEF COUNSEL FOR ADVO12 CACY.—Subsection (b) of section 612 of title 5, United 

13 States Code, is amended by inserting before the first pe14 riod ‘‘or agency compliance with section 601, 603, 604, 

15 605(b), 609, or 610’’. 

16 SEC. 309. JURISDICTION OF COURT OF APPEALS OVER 

17 RULES IMPLEMENTING THE REGULATORY 

18 FLEXIBILITY ACT. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 2342 of title 28, United 

20 States Code, is amended— 

21 (1) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

22 end; 

23 (2) in paragraph (7), by striking the period at 

24 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
64 

•HR 5 IH

1 (3) by inserting after paragraph (7) the fol2 lowing new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(8) all final rules under section 608(a) of title 

4 5.’’. 

5 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Paragraph (3) of 

6 section 2341 of title 28, United States Code, is amended— 

7 (1) in subparagraph (D), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

8 the end; 

9 (2) in subparagraph (E), by striking the period 

10 at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

11 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub12 paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(F) the Office of Advocacy of the Small 

14 Business Administration, when the final rule is 

15 under section 608(a) of title 5.’’. 

16 (c) AUTHORIZATION TO INTERVENE AND COMMENT

17 ON AGENCY COMPLIANCE WITH ADMINISTRATIVE PROCE18 DURE.—Subsection (b) of section 612 of title 5, United 

19 States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘chapter 5, and 

20 chapter 7,’’ after ‘‘this chapter,’’. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
65 

•HR 5 IH

1 SEC. 310. ESTABLISHMENT AND APPROVAL OF SMALL BUSI2 NESS CONCERN SIZE STANDARDS BY CHIEF 

3 COUNSEL FOR ADVOCACY. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (A) of section 

5 3(a)(2) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

6 632(a)(2)(A)) is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the cri8 teria specified in paragraph (1)— 

9 ‘‘(i) the Administrator may specify de10 tailed definitions or standards by which a 

11 business concern may be determined to be 

12 a small business concern for purposes of 

13 this Act or the Small Business Investment 

14 Act of 1958; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) the Chief Counsel for Advocacy 

16 may specify such definitions or standards 

17 for purposes of any other Act.’’. 

18 (b) APPROVAL BY CHIEF COUNSEL.—Clause (iii) of 

19 section 3(a)(2)(C) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

20 632(a)(2)(C)(iii)) is amended to read as follows: 

21 ‘‘(iii) except in the case of a size 

22 standard prescribed by the Administrator, 

23 is approved by the Chief Counsel for Advo24 cacy.’’. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
66 

•HR 5 IH

1 (c) INDUSTRY VARIATION.—Paragraph (3) of section 

2 3(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632(a)(3)) is 

3 amended— 

4 (1) by inserting ‘‘or Chief Counsel for Advo5 cacy, as appropriate’’ before ‘‘shall ensure’’; and 

6 (2) by inserting ‘‘or Chief Counsel for Advo7 cacy’’ before the period at the end. 

8 (d) JUDICIAL REVIEW OF SIZE STANDARDS AP9 PROVED BY CHIEF COUNSEL.—Section 3(a) of the Small 

10 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632(a)) is amended by adding 

11 at the end the following new paragraph: 

12 ‘‘(9) JUDICIAL REVIEW OF STANDARDS AP13 PROVED BY CHIEF COUNSEL.—In the case of an ac14 tion for judicial review of a rule which includes a 

15 definition or standard approved by the Chief Counsel 

16 for Advocacy under this subsection, the party seek17 ing such review shall be entitled to join the Chief 

18 Counsel as a party in such action.’’. 

19 SEC. 311. CLERICAL AMENDMENTS. 

20 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 601 of title 5, United 

21 States Code, is amended— 

22 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

23 (A) by striking the semicolon at the end 

24 and inserting a period; and 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
67 

•HR 5 IH

1 (B) by striking ‘‘(1) the term’’ and insert2 ing the following: 

3 ‘‘(1) AGENCY.—The term’’; 

4 (2) in paragraph (3)— 

5 (A) by striking the semicolon at the end 

6 and inserting a period; and 

7 (B) by striking ‘‘(3) the term’’ and insert8 ing the following: 

9 ‘‘(3) SMALL BUSINESS.—The term’’; 

10 (3) in paragraph (5)— 

11 (A) by striking the semicolon at the end 

12 and inserting a period; and 

13 (B) by striking ‘‘(5) the term’’ and insert14 ing the following: 

15 ‘‘(5) SMALL GOVERNMENTAL JURISDICTION.— 

16 The term’’; and 

17 (4) in paragraph (6)— 

18 (A) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and inserting a pe19 riod; and 

20 (B) by striking ‘‘(6) the term’’ and insert21 ing the following: 

22 ‘‘(6) SMALL ENTITY.—The term’’. 

23 (b) INCORPORATIONS BY REFERENCE AND CERTIFI24 CATIONS.—The heading of section 605 of title 5, United 

25 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
68 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘§ 605. Incorporations by reference and certifi2 cations’’. 

3 (c) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections for 

4 chapter 6 of title 5, United States Code, is amended as 

5 follows: 

6 (1) By striking the item relating to section 605 

7 and inserting the following new item: 

‘‘605. Incorporations by reference and certifications.’’. 

8 (2) By striking the item relating to section 607 

9 and inserting the following new item: 

‘‘607. Quantification requirements.’’. 

10 (3) By striking the item relating to section 608 

11 and inserting the following: 

‘‘608. Additional powers of Chief Counsel for Advocacy.’’. 

12 (d) OTHER CLERICAL AMENDMENTS TO CHAPTER

13 6.—Chapter 6 of title 5, United States Code, is amended 

14 in section 603(d)— 

15 (1) by striking paragraph (2); 

16 (2) by striking ‘‘(1) For a covered agency,’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘For a covered agency,’’; 

18 (3) by striking ‘‘(A) any’’ and inserting ‘‘(1) 

19 any’’; 

20 (4) by striking ‘‘(B) any’’ and inserting ‘‘(2) 

21 any’’; and 

22 (5) by striking ‘‘(C) advice’’ and inserting ‘‘(3) 

23 advice’’. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
69 

•HR 5 IH

1 SEC. 312. AGENCY PREPARATION OF GUIDES. 

2 Section 212(a)(5) the Small Business Regulatory En3 forcement Fairness Act of 1996 (5 U.S.C. 601 note) is 

4 amended to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘(5) AGENCY PREPARATION OF GUIDES.—The 

6 agency shall, in its sole discretion, taking into ac7 count the subject matter of the rule and the lan8 guage of relevant statutes, ensure that the guide is 

9 written using sufficiently plain language likely to be 

10 understood by affected small entities. Agencies may 

11 prepare separate guides covering groups or classes of 

12 similarly affected small entities and may cooperate 

13 with associations of small entities to distribute such 

14 guides. In developing guides, agencies shall solicit 

15 input from affected small entities or associations of 

16 affected small entities. An agency may prepare 

17 guides and apply this section with respect to a rule 

18 or a group of related rules.’’. 

19 SEC. 313. COMPTROLLER GENERAL REPORT. 

20 Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 

21 of this title, the Comptroller General of the United States 

22 shall complete and publish a study that examines whether 

23 the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Ad24 ministration has the capacity and resources to carry out 

25 the duties of the Chief Counsel under this title and the 

26 amendments made by this title. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
70 

•HR 5 IH

1 TITLE IV—REQUIRE EVALUA2 TION BEFORE IMPLE3 MENTING EXECUTIVE 

4 WISHLISTS ACT 

5 SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE. 

6 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Require Evaluation 

7 before Implementing Executive Wishlists Act’’ or as the 

8 ‘‘REVIEW Act’’. 

9 SEC. 402. RELIEF PENDING REVIEW. 

10 Section 705 of title 5, United States Code, is amend11 ed— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘When’’ and inserting the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—When’’; and 

15 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(b) HIGH-IMPACT RULES.— 

17 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection— 

18 ‘‘(A) the term ‘Administrator’ means the 

19 Administrator of the Office of Information and 

20 Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Management 

21 and Budget; and 

22 ‘‘(B) the term ‘high-impact rule’ means 

23 any rule that the Administrator determines may 

24 impose an annual cost on the economy of not 

25 less than $1,000,000,000. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
71 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(2) IDENTIFICATION.—A final rule may not be 

2 published or take effect until the agency making the 

3 rule submits the rule to the Administrator and the 

4 Administrator makes a determination as to whether 

5 the rule is a high-impact rule, which shall be pub6 lished by the agency with the final rule. 

7 ‘‘(3) RELIEF.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

9 subparagraph (B), an agency shall postpone the 

10 effective date of a high-impact rule of the agen11 cy until the final disposition of all actions seek12 ing judicial review of the rule. 

13 ‘‘(B) FAILURE TO TIMELY SEEK JUDICIAL

14 REVIEW.—Notwithstanding section 553(i), if no 

15 person seeks judicial review of a high-impact 

16 rule— 

17 ‘‘(i) during any period explicitly pro18 vided for judicial review under the statute 

19 authorizing the making of the rule; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) if no such period is explicitly pro21 vided for, during the 60-day period begin22 ning on the date on which the high-impact 

23 rule is published in the Federal Register, 

24 the high-impact rule may take effect as early as 

25 the date on which the applicable period ends. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
72 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(4) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

2 this subsection may be construed to impose any limi3 tation under law on any court against the issuance 

4 of any order enjoining the implementation of any 

5 rule.’’. 

6 TITLE V—ALL ECONOMIC REGU7 LATIONS ARE TRANSPARENT 

8 ACT 

9 SEC. 501. SHORT TITLE. 

10 This title may be cited as the ‘‘All Economic Regula11 tions are Transparent Act’’ or the ‘‘ALERT Act’’. 

12 SEC. 502. OFFICE OF INFORMATION AND REGULATORY AF13 FAIRS PUBLICATION OF INFORMATION RE14 LATING TO RULES. 

15 (a) AMENDMENT.—Title 5, United States Code, is 

16 amended by inserting after chapter 6, the following new 

17 chapter: 

18 ‘‘CHAPTER 6A—OFFICE OF INFORMATION 

19 AND REGULATORY AFFAIRS PUBLICA20 TION OF INFORMATION RELATING TO 

21 RULES 

‘‘Sec. 651. Agency monthly submission to office of information and regulatory 

affairs. 

‘‘Sec. 652. Office of information and regulatory affairs publications. 

‘‘Sec. 653. Requirement for rules to appear in agency-specific monthly publication. 

‘‘Sec. 654. Definitions. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
73 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘SEC. 651. AGENCY MONTHLY SUBMISSION TO OFFICE OF 

2 INFORMATION AND REGULATORY AFFAIRS. 

3 ‘‘On a monthly basis, the head of each agency shall 

4 submit to the Administrator of the Office of Information 

5 and Regulatory Affairs (referred to in this chapter as the 

6 ‘Administrator’), in such a manner as the Administrator 

7 may reasonably require, the following information: 

8 ‘‘(1) For each rule that the agency expects to 

9 propose or finalize during the 12-month period fol10 lowing the month covered by the monthly submis11 sion: 

12 ‘‘(A) A summary of the nature of the rule, 

13 including the regulation identifier number and 

14 the docket number for the rule. 

15 ‘‘(B) The objectives of and legal basis for 

16 the issuance of the rule, including— 

17 ‘‘(i) any statutory or judicial deadline; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(ii) whether the legal basis restricts 

20 or precludes the agency from conducting 

21 an analysis of the costs or benefits of the 

22 rule during the rule making, and if not, 

23 whether the agency plans to conduct an 

24 analysis of the costs or benefits of the rule 

25 during the rule making. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
74 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(C) Whether the agency plans to claim an 

2 exemption from the requirements of section 553 

3 pursuant to section 553(g)(2)(A). 

4 ‘‘(D) The stage of the rule making as of 

5 the date of submission. 

6 ‘‘(E) Whether the rule is subject to review 

7 under section 610. 

8 ‘‘(2) For any rule for which the agency expects 

9 to finalize during the 12-month period following the 

10 month covered by the monthly submission and has 

11 issued a general notice of proposed rule making— 

12 ‘‘(A) an approximate schedule for com13 pleting action on the rule; 

14 ‘‘(B) an estimate of whether the rule will 

15 cost— 

16 ‘‘(i) less than $50,000,000; 

17 ‘‘(ii) $50,000,000 or more but less 

18 than $100,000,000; 

19 ‘‘(iii) $100,000,000 or more but less 

20 than $500,000,000; 

21 ‘‘(iv) $500,000,000 or more but less 

22 than $1,000,000,000; 

23 ‘‘(v) $1,000,000,000 or more but less 

24 than $5,000,000,000; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
75 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(vi) $5,000,000,000 or more but less 

2 than $10,000,000,000; or 

3 ‘‘(vii) $10,000,000,000 or more; and 

4 ‘‘(C) any estimate of the economic effects 

5 of the rule, including the imposition of un6 funded mandates and any estimate of the net 

7 effect that the rule will have on the number of 

8 jobs in the United States, that was considered 

9 in drafting the rule, or, if no such estimate is 

10 available, a statement affirming that no infor11 mation on the economic effects, including the 

12 effect on the number of jobs, of the rule has 

13 been considered. 

14 ‘‘SEC. 652. OFFICE OF INFORMATION AND REGULATORY AF15 FAIRS PUBLICATIONS. 

16 ‘‘(a) AGENCY-SPECIFIC INFORMATION PUBLISHED

17 MONTHLY.—Not later than 30 days after the submission 

18 of information pursuant to section 651, the Administrator 

19 shall make such information publicly available on the 

20 Internet. 

21 ‘‘(b) CUMULATIVE ASSESSMENT OF AGENCY RULE

22 MAKING PUBLISHED ANNUALLY.— 

23 ‘‘(1) PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REG24 ISTER.—Not later than October 1 of each year, the 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
76 

•HR 5 IH

1 Administrator shall publish in the Federal Register 

2 the following, with respect to the previous year: 

3 ‘‘(A) The information that the Adminis4 trator received from the head of each agency 

5 under section 651. 

6 ‘‘(B) The number of rules and a list of 

7 each such rule— 

8 ‘‘(i) that was proposed by each agen9 cy, including, for each such rule, an indica10 tion of whether the issuing agency con11 ducted an analysis of the costs or benefits 

12 of the rule; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) that was finalized by each agen14 cy, including for each such rule an indica15 tion of whether— 

16 ‘‘(I) the issuing agency conducted 

17 an analysis of the costs or benefits of 

18 the rule; 

19 ‘‘(II) the agency claimed an ex20 emption from the procedures under 

21 section 553 pursuant to section 

22 553(g)(2)(A); and 

23 ‘‘(III) the rule was issued pursu24 ant to a statutory mandate or the rule 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
77 

•HR 5 IH

1 making is committed to agency discre2 tion by law. 

3 ‘‘(C) The number of agency actions and a 

4 list of each such action taken by each agency 

5 that— 

6 ‘‘(i) repealed a rule; 

7 ‘‘(ii) reduced the scope of a rule; 

8 ‘‘(iii) reduced the cost of a rule; or 

9 ‘‘(iv) accelerated the expiration date 

10 of a rule. 

11 ‘‘(D) The total cost (without reducing the 

12 cost by any offsetting benefits) of all rules pro13 posed or finalized, the total cost of any un14 funded mandates imposed by all such rules, and 

15 the number of rules for which an estimate of 

16 the cost of the rule was not available. 

17 ‘‘(2) PUBLICATION ON THE INTERNET.—Not 

18 later than October 1 of each year, the Administrator 

19 shall make publicly available on the Internet the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(A) The analysis of the costs or benefits, 

22 if conducted, for each proposed rule or final 

23 rule issued by an agency for the previous year. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
78 

•HR 5 IH

1 ‘‘(B) The docket number and regulation 

2 identifier number for each proposed or final 

3 rule issued by an agency for the previous year. 

4 ‘‘(C) The number of rules and a list of 

5 each such rule reviewed by the Director of the 

6 Office of Management and Budget for the pre7 vious year, and the authority under which each 

8 such review was conducted. 

9 ‘‘(D) The number of rules and a list of 

10 each such rule for which the head of an agency 

11 completed a review under section 610 for the 

12 previous year. 

13 ‘‘(E) The number of rules and a list of 

14 each such rule submitted to the Comptroller 

15 General under section 801. 

16 ‘‘(F) The number of rules and a list of 

17 each such rule for which a resolution of dis18 approval was introduced in either the House of 

19 Representatives or the Senate under section 

20 802. 

21 ‘‘SEC. 653. REQUIREMENT FOR RULES TO APPEAR IN AGEN22 CY-SPECIFIC MONTHLY PUBLICATION. 

23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), a rule 

24 may not take effect until the information required to be 

25 made publicly available on the Internet regarding such 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
79 

•HR 5 IH

1 rule pursuant to section 652(a) has been so available for 

2 not less than 6 months. 

3 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTIONS.—The requirement of subsection 

4 (a) shall not apply in the case of a rule— 

5 ‘‘(1) for which the agency issuing the rule 

6 claims an exception under section 553(g)(2)(A); or 

7 ‘‘(2) which the President determines by Execu8 tive order should take effect because the rule is— 

9 ‘‘(A) necessary because of an imminent 

10 threat to health or safety or other emergency; 

11 ‘‘(B) necessary for the enforcement of 

12 criminal laws; 

13 ‘‘(C) necessary for national security; or 

14 ‘‘(D) issued pursuant to any statute imple15 menting an international trade agreement. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 654. DEFINITIONS. 

17 ‘‘In this chapter, the terms ‘agency’, ‘agency action’, 

18 ‘rule’, and ‘rule making’ have the meanings given those 

19 terms in section 551, and the term ‘unfunded mandate’ 

20 has the meaning given the term ‘Federal mandate’ in sec21 tion 421(6) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 

22 U.S.C. 658(6)).’’. 

23 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

24 The table of chapters for part I of title 5, United States 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
80 

•HR 5 IH

1 Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to 

2 chapter 5, the following: 

‘‘6. The Analysis of Regulatory Functions ............................................. 601

‘‘6A. Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs Publication of Information Relating to Rules .......................................... 651’’. 

3 (c) EFFECTIVE DATES.— 

4 (1) AGENCY MONTHLY SUBMISSION TO THE OF5 FICE OF INFORMATION AND REGULATORY AF6 FAIRS.—The first submission required pursuant to 

7 section 651 of title 5, United States Code, as added 

8 by subsection (a), shall be submitted not later than 

9 30 days after the date of the enactment of this title, 

10 and monthly thereafter. 

11 (2) CUMULATIVE ASSESSMENT OF AGENCY

12 RULE MAKING.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (b) of sec14 tion 652 of title 5, United States Code, as 

15 added by subsection (a), shall take effect on the 

16 date that is 60 days after the date of the enact17 ment of this title. 

18 (B) DEADLINE.—The first requirement to 

19 publish or make available, as the case may be, 

20 under subsection (b) of section 652 of title 5, 

21 United States Code, as added by subsection (a), 

22 shall be the first October 1 after the effective 

23 date of such subsection. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
81 

•HR 5 IH

1 (C) FIRST PUBLICATION.—The require2 ment under section 652(b)(2)(A) of title 5, 

3 United States Code, as added by subsection (a), 

4 shall include for the first publication, any anal5 ysis of the costs or benefits conducted for a 

6 proposed or final rule, for the 10 years before 

7 the date of the enactment of this title. 

8 (3) REQUIREMENT FOR RULES TO APPEAR IN

9 AGENCY-SPECIFIC MONTHLY PUBLICATION.—Section 

10 653 of title 5, United States Code, as added by sub11 section (a), shall take effect on the date that is 8 

12 months after the date of the enactment of this title. 

13 TITLE VI—PROVIDING ACCOUNT14 ABILITY THROUGH TRANS15 PARENCY ACT 

16 SEC. 601. SHORT TITLE. 

17 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Providing Account18 ability Through Transparency Act’’. 

19 SEC. 602. REQUIREMENT TO POST A 100 WORD SUMMARY 

20 TO REGULATIONS.GOV. 

21 Section 553(d)(1) of title 5, United States Code, as 

22 inserted by section 103(b) of this Act, is amended— 

23 (1) in subparagraph (G)(iv) by striking ‘‘; and’’ 

24 and inserting ‘‘;’’; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
82 

•HR 5 IH

1 (2) in subparagraph (H)(ii), by striking the pe2 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

3 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (H) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(I) the internet address of a summary of 

6 not more than 100 words in length of the pro7 posed rule, in plain language, that shall be 

8 posted on the internet website under section 

9 206(d) of the E–Government Act of 2002 (44 

10 U.S.C. 3501 note) (commonly known as regula11 tions.gov).’’. 

Æ 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS